Minding your Memory: November 2, 2013

Maybe it’s children who know best when it comes to gauging their parents’ memory skills. Many times aging adults aren’t aware of their fading abilities, until their kids point it out.

“The person didn’t realize that he or she is having this problem. They came with the complaint from their son, daughter, loved one,” says Dr. Aboo Mannan, geriatrician with Lee Memorial Health System.

Dr. Aboo Mannan is with Lee Memory Care. A large number of patients are referred by family.

“We have to test them and find out there is something going on with the patient,” says Dr. Mannan.

In our fast-paced, high stress world, everyone forgets things sometimes. But there are red flags that signal a deeper issue. They include someone who repeatedly asks the same question, is always misplacing things, is frequently confused, takes a long time to do familiar tasks or gets lost. Doctors may be able to pin-point the deficit.

“We have very extensive tests by our psychologist. It's a long test, it's a language and visual perception and assimilation of that information,” says Dr. Mannan.

Memory disorders can vary from Alzheimer’s to mild cognitive impairment and may be brought on by disease or chronic health conditions. The good news is, many times you can bone up on your brain health with puzzles and games.

“You have to have exercise to have better health. The brain has the exact same kind of work ability. The more you exercise with your brain, then the brain will be able to keep functioning,” says Dr. Mannan.